Camarillo updates floodmaps

Insurance numbers setto be revised

Some Camarillo residents and business owners could save money by not having to buy flood insurance as part of an update of the city's flood-zone maps.

Working with consultant and civil engineering firm PACE, city staff recently determined more than 400 homes could be removed from the flood map before owners would have to renew their flood insurance by June, said Public Works Director Tom Fox. FEMA approved the new maps last month.

Like other cities throughout the county, Camarillo has been working with consultants to revise the Federal Emergency Management Agency flood map, which went into effect Jan. 20, 2010. FEMA maps the floodplains to show areas that could potentially flood in 100-year and 500-year storms.

Residents and business owners with property on the flood map are required to purchase insurance.

The 400 homes being removed from the map are along Adolfo Road just east of Santa Rosa Road and near the Conejo Creek. This includes businesses on the south side of Adolfo and homes on the north side of Adolfo, Fox said.

About three years ago, FEMA released their results that originally flagged about 8,000 homes and businesses in Camarillo alone. A revised version of the map lowered that number to 5,000, Fox said.

Camarillo home and business owners have spent about $12 million on flood insurance, Fox said.

Camarillo city staff and consultants are using new software that generates maps that examine land areas in 10-by-10-foot increments, rather then the 100-by-100-foot snapshots used by FEMA.

"That means our models are 100 times more accurate," Fox said. "Now we are able to show that the flood impact isn't as dramatic as FEMA was projecting."

The city will be sending out mailers within the next few weeks notifying residents and business owners if they are no longer included in the flood map, Fox said.

Camarillo has also hired various consultants to review two other areas in the city. The first is an area north of Highway 101 and east of Lewis Road, which includes about 1,000 homes.

The other area includes land along Calleguas Creek just south of Highway 101, and includes the Village At The Park and Woodside Greens developments. That could potentially take an additional 500 homes and businesses off the floodmap, Fox said.

The Ventura County Watershed Protection Agency, along with Village at the Park developer, D.R. Horton, are working on an $8 million joint project to widen Calleguas Creek to create more water capacity, Fox said.

The Ventura County Watershed Protection District will be working on the west side of the channel, while D.R. Horton will complete the east side of the channel. A proposal is out to bid to clear the vegetation.